Review: A Week to Be Wicked by Tessa Dare

Reviewed by Jen

What a fantastic romance! Tessa Dare consistently delivers engaging, smart, and stirring stories, with a romances I can root for and characters I can care about. Honestly, I was a little concerned about how this hero was going to appeal to me. He wasn’t my favorite in the first book. But I am happy to say that Colin won me over with his loveable mix of affable charm and utter vulnerability. He is an unrepentant rake, but he truly believes he can never be anything more. Until he is completely undone by an awkward bluestocking who sees though the very heart of him.

Minerva Highwood has no delusions about her prospects in society. Her only real passion lies in geology… perhaps with a little left over to condemn a possible match between Colin and her sister, Diana. She knows that there’s no love between them and she fears that Colin will muck up Diana’s life, just like he does about every other thing in his path. When he ignores her demands to walk away from Diana, Minerva offers Colin a daring proposition. If he’ll run away with her to a geological convention in Scotland, she’ll give him all her winnings. Then he’ll have no reason to marry her sister.

Colin actually has no intention of saying yes. He wasn’t even planning to marry Diana in the first place. But despite his resolve to say no, he ends up an accomplice to Minerva’s crazy plan. And even though they face setback after setback, their adventure ends up the best thing that ever happened to either one of them.

I really can’t tell you whether I loved Colin or Minerva more. Each shines as an individual, and together they are even more than the sum of their parts. They are both so fragile, while they hide behind the exteriors that protect them best. Minerva is intelligent and driven, but she has lived in her sister’s shadow for so long. No one bothers to look past her spectacles or idiosyncracies long enough to see the beauty underneath. Even her mother doesn’t see her worth. The early scenes between her and Colin are so heartbreaking. It’s so clear how she yearns for him and when he dismisses her, it… hurts.

As for Colin, he may come off as happy-go-lucky, but in his mind, he destroys everything he touches. He can’t afford to care about anything, since he’ll just muck it up anyway. So he tries to stay unaffected by everything and everyone. But he can’t keep Minerva at a distance. Not even with the silly game he plays where he pretends he can’t remember her name. Not even with the rules he makes to protect her innocence. At a certain point, it all just crumbles away. And it couldn’t be more satisfying.

I believed in this unlikely romance 100%. These two complete each other. It’s heartfelt. And sexy. And poignant, funny, and darn near perfect. You don’t want to miss this one.